DVDizzy Forum

Pretty odd that this hasn't been widely reported...

Jonathan Brandis, star of "SeaQuest DSV", long the cover-boy of teen magazines, and the voice of Mozenrath on Disney's animated "Aladdin" series, died at the age of 27 last week. Cause of death hasn't been determined yet.

Here's an item from the website of a studio he was making a movie for:
http://www.novelcitypictures.com/home.asp

What else might we know him from?
He looks very familiar, although I did not watch Seaquest DSV.

indianajdp wrote:What else might we know him from?
He looks very familiar, although I did not watch Seaquest DSV.

He was the kid in Ladybugs, the Rodney Dangerfield comedy about the boy who dresses as a girl to play on a soccer team. He was the boy. He also had roles in "IT" and "The Neverending Story, Part II." Apparently, he was also in "Outside Providence" and "Hart's War", more recently.

You might also remember him from his Thanksgiving appearance on "Saved By The Bell: The College Years", as himself.

But really, the "teen idol" is his claim to fame - I think he had the record for teen mag covers until JTT dethroned him in the mid-'90s. But then, I don't exactly have accurate stats on the matter, so that may be a lie.

In the few things I've seen him in, I've always felt his acting was too hammy and unrealistic, but besides that fact, I'm sad to find out he's gone. The fact that he died at 27 and no one yet knows how he died really creeps me out...

That's it ... Ladybugs and IT. I knew I had seen him somewhere else.

27 and no word on his death. Very tragic, but I hope it was "natural" and not something worse.

Wow, that is tragic. It seems strange. I am the same age he is and I just can't believe that. Its also strange that nobodys realy heard anything. I cheked the IMDB and it says he died on Nov 12. But it doesn't say from what. You can check it out and it also lists what movies he was in.

http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0000970/

So Sad.

Holy crap, that's a shock and a shame. Ladybugs was a funny movie, and he was good in Stephen King's It. I was never a Seaquest DSV fan, but he seemed like an okay guy.

UPDATE... he died last Wednesday, November 12. They say he hung himself and there was no note or anything. Strange the news media didn't report any of this.

Maerj wrote: UPDATE... he died last Wednesday, November 12. They say he hung himself and there was no note or anything. Strange the news media didn't report any of this.

THAT was the something worse I was afraid of.
When someone like this dies and there is no official word you have to wonder why. My first hunch was, for whatever reason, he killed himself.

Dropping like flies, ain't they?
I was quite the fan of SeaQuest during its inital run (although they seemed to change the cast every season ).
First the guy from On the Buses, and now this!

Jonathan Brandis' Apparent Suicide

by Sarah Hall
Nov 21, 2003, 12:50 AM PT



Actor Jonathan Brandis, who began his television and film career as a child, died November 12, the victim of an apparent suicide. He was 27.

Brandis was best known for his portrayal of crewmember Lucas Wolenczek on two seasons of Steven Spielberg's underwater sci-fi series, SeaQuest DSV, for which he won a 1993 Young Artists Award, catapulting him to teen idol status.

The actor got his start at age six, when he landed a recurring role on the soap One Life to Live and appeared in numerous commercials. He moved to Los Angeles with his family at age nine, and made guest appearances on shows such as Murder She Wrote and Who's the Boss?

Brandis earned his first starring film role in 1990's The Neverending Story II: The Next Chapter. He went on to appear in 1992's Ladybugs with Rodney Dangerfield and more recently in the Farrelly Brother's Outside Providence in 1999.

Police said a friend of Brandis' called 911 from his apartment just before midnight on November 11 to report that the actor had attempted suicide by hanging. Paramedics rushed him to the hospital but he died the next day.

Paul Peterson, president of A Minor Consideration, an organization that deals with issues affecting child actors, released a statement expressing his sorrow over Brandis' death.

"We are left with a sense of helplessness and perhaps even anger that this thoroughly unexpected death occurred when we have spent years developing resources to deal with any and all crisis situations," Peterson's statement read. "This one hurts. What more can we say?"

The Los Angeles coroner's office performed an autopsy, but won't announce the cause of death until Brandis' blood and toxicology results are returned, which could take up to six weeks. However, according to Peterson, initial reports showed no sign of drugs in Brandis' system.

"Speculations as to the underlying cause of this tragedy are exactly that: speculations. It serves no purpose to leap to conclusions for none of us will really know what led Jonathan to his decision to take his life," Peterson stated.

Brandis reportedly left no suicide note. He was an only child, who is survived by his parents, Greg and Mary Brandis.

indianajdp wrote:

Maerj wrote: UPDATE... he died last Wednesday, November 12. They say he hung himself and there was no note or anything. Strange the news media didn't report any of this.

THAT was the something worse I was afraid of.
When someone like this dies and there is no official word you have to wonder why. My first hunch was, for whatever reason, he killed himself.

I don't think it's possible for a 27 year old to die of "natural causes".

Terrible news. I informed some friends of this tragic death, I still cannot believe it. And the lack of press attention, I mean his is not as high news worthy as Justin Timberlake, but still deserved some news attention. Terrible news indeed.

Stash, it's very possible for a 27 year-old to die of natural causes. That's what any non-accident, homicide or suicide death would be classified as. Cancer, heart conditon...all would be natural causes although at such a young age would be somewhat rare.

i would only recognized him from the aladdin TV series.

indianajdp wrote:Stash, it's very possible for a 27 year-old to die of natural causes. That's what any non-accident, homicide or suicide death would be classified as. Cancer, heart conditon...all would be natural causes although at such a young age would be somewhat rare.

I wouldn't necessarily consider any of those to be "natural" amongst healthy 27 year olds though.

Poor Guy... It's a shame all the people who are dying in Hollywood as of late. This guy was so young too. My cousin almost started crying, she used to have a huge crush on that kid. I liked him in Never Ending Story 2 and Ladybugs. Sidekicks was alright too. It's just a shame...

According to CNN the cause of death was suicide.

I remember him from Neverending Story II. That's really sad about his death. Even sadder that it was suicide.